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Mountain Mama Harvest: This weeks abundance: Collard greens, kale, comfrey, potatoes, onion, peppers, cucumber, zucchini, egg plant, green beans, carrots, sage mint tea, hops, stevia, tea mix of lavender cleavers, mint, parsley, celery, dill seed, nasturtium mix, nettle, basil, tomatoes ( roma, cherry, purple cherokee, green zebra) and cabbage  

Whew! Now it is  time to make a lot of herbal skin care products. Have a beautiful day 

Zucchini Pizza Crust: 

http://www.myhumblekitchen.com/2013/09/best-zucchini-recipe-ever-zu...

Honey Sweetened Refrigerated Pickles: 

http://www.realfoodallergyfree.com/2011/08/honey-sweetened-refriger...

Sweet Zucchini Relish: 

http://www.chicagotribune.com/lifestyles/food/sns-food-sides-zucchi...

Tomato Basil Salsa:

http://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/tomato-basil-salsa-10000000223735/

Information on Dill Seed:

http://wholespice.com/blog/?p=2222

Dill Seed Braid Bread:

http://www.tasteofhome.com/recipes/dill-seed-braid

Digestive Churan (dill seeds, plus you will need to purchase a few more seeds)

http://www.tarladalal.com/Digestive-Churan-31529r

Warm Dill Potato Salad: 

http://www.tasteofhome.com/recipes/warm-dill-potato-salad

Nasturtium Pesto:  

You need 6 cups nasturtiums.  Because you have about 2 cups of nasturtiums, I would add some nettle and basil to this recipe to equal out your 6 cups. 

http://www.gardenbetty.com/2013/01/nasturtium-pesto/

Today's Breakfast: 

When I cook, most of the time I just throw things together.  The spices I use depend on the mood I am in, what I have in stock and what country I feel like eating from.  Today, I had some snow peas from the garden so the mood was Asian stir fry.   There are no exact measurements here.   I am thinking that I should have added some  freshly grated ginger and saute it with the celery.  

What would you add to this?  

From our garden: 

Snow peas, celery, garlic chives,arugula, cilantro, salad greens and mustard greens.

Other Ingredients: 

3 garlic cloves, minced

2 Tbl. sesame oil/or more

sunflower oil 

2 tsp. balsamic vinegar/or more

2 tsp. miso

sushi rice

I blanched the snow peas in boiling water for 1 minute, strained

Stir-fry:

Add celery, onions and chopped garlic- stir fry about 2 minutes

Add snow peas- stir fry 2 minutes

Add 2 tsp miso, sesame oil and balsamic vinegar stir until blended

Add sushi rice mix well

Serve on a plate and top with chopped cilantro and chopped arugula

Ready to eat and enjoy it with a big salad 

Mountain Mama  Food Menu: 

Morning Tea:  High Vitamin C Tea:

1 quart size mason jar

1 glass bowl

Mix herbs in glass bowl then put in jar with lid, label 

4 parts rose hips

3 parts hibiscus flowers

2 parts lemongrass

1 part cinnamon chips, (sweet cinnamon chips it you can find them)

To make tea add 1 tablespoon of herbs into boiling filtered water, turn down to the lowest setting and simmer 1 minute.  OR turn off and steep for 5 minutes 

The first two meals listed were made from the left-overs from the night before: 

Breakfast: Rice pasta, cabbage, arugula, organic beef hot dogs chopped, onions, garlic, dill and celtic salt

Snack:  Rice pasta, cabbage, arugula, mustard greens, organic beef hot dogs chopped, onions, garlic dill and celtic salt. 

The turkey I used throughout the week was cooked last Sunday: 

Lunch:  Cabbage, carrots, beets, onions, garlic, turkey with organic homemade ranch dressing tossed in with it.  

Organic Ranch Dressing: 

About 1 1/2 cups organic butter milk,

about 1/4 cup organic olive oil,

about 6 plus shakes of organic balsamic vinegar,

about 1 tablespoon of organic lemon concentrate,

2 tablespoons of dill,

4 tablespoons of parsley,

1/8 cup finely chopped organic red onion,

1 tablespoon of paprika,

1 tablespoon of mustard powder,

1 tablespoon garlic granules,

lots of pepper and celtic salt ,

Shake, shake, shake, refrigerate.

Enjoy!

This salad feeds the senses of smell and sight, as well as delights the taste buds.   This salad provides the body with important vitamins, minerals, fiber, nutrition, tissue support.  Disease prevention at it's best. Eat this salad at least 5 times a week. 

1/4 cup flaxseed oil

1/4 cup olive oil

1 clove crushed garlic

8 Greek or Italian olives, or 4 of each, pitted and sliced, (ferrous sulfate free olives)

3 fresh green onions, chopped

1 cup balsamic vinegar

1 tablespoon sweet basil

1 tablespoon rosemary

1 tablespoon thyme

2 sweet peppers, one yellow, one red, thinly sliced

3 tomatoes. sliced

2 heads of dark green leafy lettuce, (choose two different kinds that are in season in your area) washed and broken into bite-sized pieces

sea salt to taste

1/2 cup chopped parsley

1/2 cup chopped chives

1.  Pour the oils into a wooden bowl, and spread the oils onto the sides and bottom of the bowl. 

2.  Add the garlic, lives and green onions.  Use a wooden spoon to gently spread them over the whole bowl.  Repeat this process with half of the balsamic vinegar, sweet basil, rosemary, and thyme.  Allow to sit at room temperature for 15 minutes. 

3.  Stir in the peppers, tomatoes, and carrots.  Add the lettuce, toss, and allow to sit at room temperature for 5 minutes. 

4.  Add the remaining basil, rosemary, and thyme:  some sea salt to taste and the parsley,  Toss well. Add more balsamic vinegar if desired.  

5.  Sprinkle the top with chives.   

Yield:  6 to 8 servings 

Organic produce is what heals....... 

This great recipe comes from the book, Healing Tonics, 101 Herbal Concoctions.  It is a great book! 

http://www.amazon.com/Healing-Tonics-Concoctions-Increase-Digestion/dp/1580172407

Among the world's oldest known foods, figs were used to sweeten dishes long before sugarcane was widely cultivated. Figs ripen during mid- to late summer, with some varieties lingering for a second harvest in early fall. Their skin can be purple, green, yellow, brown or white, and their flesh ranges from pale gold to deep, rich red. Fresh, ripe figs are best eaten out of hand but are also excellent served with cheese, grilled to accompany cured meats or savory salads, and paired with creamy desserts.

Figs are rich in calcium, iron, phosphorus and potassium. Vitamin C and the B group vitamins are also present in small quantities. They are also high in fibre. Figs have the highest overall mineral content of all common fruits. A 40 gram (1/4 cup) serving provides 244 mg of potassium (7% of the DV), 53 mg of calcium (6% of the DV) and 1.2 mg of iron (6% of 

Preparing
Rinse fresh figs under cold running water and gently pat dry before serving. Overhandling will bruise the delicate fruit. The peel is edible and, unless specified in a recipe, can be left on the fruit. Use a sharp paring knife to cut figs in half lengthwise.

Remember buy organic and support your local farmers.. 

Fig Butter

http://oursimplelife-sc.com/2011/08/03/fig-butter-recipe/

How to use figs:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KlLcuzdnDuU

How to get your figs to ripen faster on your fig tree: 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SJckql2bOWc&feature=related

How to dry figs for fruit leather:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MY4IzbUEch0

More information on drying figs:

http://www.wikihow.com/Dry-Figs

Fig Salad:

RECIPE:
Serves 1

large handful of fresh lettuce leaves
3 fresh figs, sliced in quarters
1 oz. walnut halves, toasted dry in a pan
sprinkling of blue cheese
2 tbsp. homemade balsamic dressing

Balsamic Vinaigrette:
2 1/2 tbsp mustard
4 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1/2 cup fresh oregano
1 1/2 cups olive oil
1 tsp agave / honey
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 pepper

DIRECTIONS:
Put all the ingredients,  except the oil in a blender. With the machine running, drizzle in oil. Vinaigrette will emulsify.
Taste for additional seasoning if required.

Fig Salad:

Fig Salad w/ Arugula,  and Walnuts:

2 heads of fresh arugula, washed and dried 
4 fresh figs, quartered (yum)
1/4 cup of walnuts, toasted lightly (watch that they don't burn)


Dressing:
2 tbsp of fig vinegar or balsamic vinegar
1 tsp of tarragon mustard
6 tbsp of good extra virgin olive oil
1 tbsp of walnut oil (optional)

Plate your arugula on a large platter and top w/ quartered figs.
Sprinkle walnuts and  all over salad.
Keep cool until ready to serve.
Just before serving, spoon dressing over salad.

It is week twenty  of our farm wellness boxes and it is our last harvest day.  It has been a great farming season and we learned a lot.   There were some hard lessons learned and some insightful ones,   

This summer was a green tomato summer, which means a colder winter, I see more darkness and lots of rain... Which means start taking your vitamin D NOW, plan hikes in nature through the fall season and winter.  Hike when it rains, run when it rains, walk in the rain, do kung fu in the rain and dance in the rain.  Embrace the liquid sunshine.  Sungaze at the sunsets when the sun is out, take a moment bundle up and watch the cold starry sky.  Seek art with community, add color to your winter.  

Plan you winter menus  to build up your immune system, by adding energizing bone broth, make elderberry syrup, make fire cider, high vitamin C tea, nettle tea and stay away from SUGAR.... 

Eat organic fermented foods

Get some tinctures made of Elecampane, Oregon grape, echinacea, hawthorn, lemon balm,

Thoughts and talks have been started on new things that we will implement for next year.  But,  I am also very ready for some much needed rest, reading, knitting, crafting, cooking, more canning,  more sleep,  jumping into my herbal studies and making healing remedies.

I will also be teaching some herbal classes, I will put together a schedule soon and send it out.  

Wellness Box:

Nettle, Kale, swiss chard, brassica family, peppermint, lemon balm, catnip mint, stevia, parsley, sage, rosemary, fennel seeds, hawthorn berries, rosehips, kakai pumpkin, acorn squash, sugar pumpkin, onions, celery, and jerusalem artichokes also called sunchokes. 

Rosehips: 

Pour 1 cup of boiling water over 2 heaping teaspoons of chopped rose hips. You can use rose hips with or without their seeds. Steep the herbal tea, covered, for 15 minutes and strain. Sweeten the refreshing, slightly sour tea with honey, if desired. Drink the tea lukewarm at bedtime for maximum effectiveness.

You could also make this as a strong infusion and steep it for 8 hours. 

Rose hip tea is refreshing, pleasantly tart and contains vitamins A, B, C, E and K, pectin and organic acids. Besides battling colds, the nutrient-rich tea boosts your health in other ways as well. This popular medicinal tea strengthens the body's resistance to infection, reinforces digestive function, combats all kinds of illnesses with fever, flushes out the kidneys and urinary tract and relieves mild rheumatic pain.

When you think of vitamin C, you are most likely to think of grapefruit and oranges. But rose hips, the fruit of the wild rose, have even more vitamin C than do citrus fruits. Rose hips were long known as a food, but only since the mid-twentieth century has their medicinal value as a premier source of the essential vitamin been recognized. The vitamin C content gives rose hip tea its primary benefit, the ability to help prevent and treat colds and flu.

Hawthorn:  Make infused honey and Tincture

http://www.susunweed.com/herbal_ezine/November08/healingwise.htm

More information on Hawthorn:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-sOWXQi08T4

This is one of the ways I like to make the Hawthorn Honey: 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J6AG_FlEkfY

Make a tincture of Hawthorn

Stevia, Catnip Mint, Parsley... 

Kakai Pumpkin ( eat the hulled seeds) and Sugar Pumpkin (use for desserts)

Jerusalem Artichoke or Sunchoke 

Information: 

http://www.lehighvalleylive.com/food/index.ssf/2011/10/flavor_of_the_week_jerusalem_a.html

http://www.foodwisenw.com/tag/jerusalem-artichoke/

Raw Recipe: fleur de sel, is sea salt

http://www.forkandflower.com/2013/02/raw-jerusalem-artichoke-salad-with-lemon.html

Fennel Seeds:

Fennel Cream: 

Use over organic chicken, organic sausage, organic veggies. etc...

3 tablespoons olive oil

2 teaspoons fennel seeds, crushed

1 large onion, thinly sliced

2 tablespoons minced garlic

3 large shallots, minced

1/2 cup organic  dry white wine or organic white wine

1 1/2 cups organic chicken broth

1/2 cup  organic whipping cream (Do not use Ultra Pasteurized!) 

Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in heavy large skillet over medium-high heat. Add 1 teaspoon crushed fennel seeds and stir until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Reduce heat to medium-low. Now add onion and sauté until they are very tender and caramelized, about 40 minutes.   Add minced garlic and minced shallots.  Cook for about 2 minutes

 Add white wine and boil until liquid is reduced to glaze, about 2 minutes. Add chicken broth and whipping cream and boil until reduced to sauce consistency, whisking often, about 5 minutes. Season sauce to taste with salt and pepper.

Enjoy!! 

Peace to you, enjoy your fall and upcoming winter! 

Pictured below:  Golden Tree Of Fall, (this is not the sun)

Most of you know that I have MCS, I have good days and bad.  Because of my MCS, I was having nerve issues in my right leg last night  and this morning I was frustrated with how tired my legs were. 

I decided that I needed to go on our longer route up the mountain.  I have a tendency to make myself do more exercise when I am having MCS issues.  It pushes the circulation in my body  and I sweat, therefore I am pushing out the toxins.  

I was not happy with my stances today.  My legs were just not going to give.  I thought it was best to let them have their moments and concentrate on my upper body movements.  Trying to remember the order when you are mentally exhausted is a bit frustrating,  Because of who I am, I make sure I just laugh at it and I know that it is only temporary.  

After I made it through my forms I was complaining about the tiredness in my legs, thanks to Joseph he reminded my that I had doubled my forms workout.  I went from doing 9 forms a day to doing 18 forms a day.  

Wow!  This was exciting and no wonder my legs were so fatigued.  

After my workout, I sat and listened to the mountain sounds and breathed in the fresh air while I was drinking tea.    

Workout today: 

Each form 2 times equals 18 forms 

10 straight leg kicks, right and left

10 front kicks, right and left

10 side kicks, right and left 

10 inside crescent kicks, right and left

10 outside crescent kicks, right and left

10 spinning inside crescent kicks, right and left

10 narrow push-ups

10 wide push-ups

10 spinning heel kicks

back exercises

ab exercises

stretch

We have a no spray sign and because of that we are the ones who have to do the up keep along the road in front of our property.  So, after my workout, I did roadside maintenance.  This gave me two hours of squatting up and down, and I used a pair of scissors.  

After that I needed to warm up, drinking a cup of tea was good for that.   The rest of my day I pulled weeds (more squatting) and carried 2 five gallon buckets of compost more times than I can count. 

Looking forward to adjusting to my new workout.  I feel I will be adjusted to it in about one more week then I will increase my forms up to 3 or 4 each.  

I am sticking to my goals.    There is no way I am going to slow down.  Looking forward to catching the tail end of Matt.  If I keep working hard enough I can do this.  

Roadside maintenance, took it in about 2 feet.  As much as I keep using my scissors, I am going to have one strong grip. 

Training hard like this (of course even when you are not training hard) it is important to make sure you eat organic green food  with a balance of clean protein.    If you do not you WILL wear your body down 

Some organic red food, like organic strawberries, is also very healthy for you.  Make sure that you never eat NON-organic strawberries.  Always eat only organic strawberries.  Non-organic strawberries have a ton of toxic chemicals in them.  

Healthy fuel, to keep the body lubed up and ready to go.